Iran Eyes Closer Economic Cooperation with Uzbekistan


TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Highlighting the existing capacities for the expansion of ties between Iran and Uzbekistan, the Iranian foreign minister said Tehran attaches great significance to economic cooperation with Tashkent, specifically in the transportation field.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and his Uzbek counterpart Bakhtiyor Saidov held a meeting on the sidelines of the 4th meeting of Afghanistan's neighboring countries in Samarkand on Thursday.

They discussed the issues of mutual interest and also the common views of the two countries regarding Afghanistan.

Amirabdollahian thanked Uzbekistan’s government for hosting the conference and inviting the Iranian delegation.

He described the relations between the two countries in various areas, especially their economic cooperation in sectors like transportation, transit and logistics, as highly important.

Amirabdollahian also pointed to the long-standing commonalities of Iran and Uzbekistan and their potential to improve their relations, the Foreign Ministry’s website reported.

Given that the two nations’ ranking officials are determined to expand cooperation, it is necessary that they use their existing capacities to grant the wishes of the presidents of Iran and Uzbekistan, he added.

The Iranian foreign minister also stressed the need for coordination between the Foreign Ministries of the two nations to exchange high-ranking delegations.

For his part, Saidov thanked Amirabdollahian and his entourage for accepting the invitation to attend the conference on Afghanistan.

He also talked about the latest state of political, economic, commercial, transport and transit relations between Uzbekistan and Iran as well as the exchange of delegations at high levels.